Tom Holland on How SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME Pays Tribute To Sam Raimi with "Raimi-Cam"
As awesome and as fun as Marvel’s Spider-Man films have been, they still don’t compare to what director Sam Raimi gave us with his Spider-Man movies. The filmmaker reshaped the genre with those films and those first two movies he made are still my two favorite live-action Spider-Man movies.
Well, it turns out that this Spider-Man: No Way Home director Jon Watt made sure to pay tribute to Raimi in the upcoming film. During a recent interview with Den of Geek, Tom Holland revealed that there's one technical thing that Watts does, which is borrowed directly from the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films and they call it the “Raimi-cam”:
"I think something that Jon Watts did really well is, he would call it the 'Raimi-cam,' And he would do these really quick smash push-ins on the characters, which is something that Sam Raimi I suppose was quite famous for, so Jon definitely paid respect to the previous two [franchises]."
So why did Watts incorporate this style of Raimi filmmaking for this film? I imagine it’s because the story involves a few characters from Raimi’s Spider-Man films including Doc Ock, Green Goblin, Sandman, and maybe Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. With the involvement of these characters it makes sense to use elements of Raimi’s signature filmmaking style.
In the movie, “for the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero's identity is revealed, bringing his Super Hero responsibilities into conflict with his normal life and putting those he cares about most at risk. When he enlists Doctor Strange’s help to restore his secret, the spell tears a hole in their world, releasing the most powerful villains who’ve ever fought a Spider-Man in any universe. Now, Peter will have to overcome his greatest challenge yet, which will not only forever alter his own future but the future of the Multiverse.”
The movie also stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Alfred Molina as Doc Ock, Jamie Foxx as Electro, and Willem Dafoe back in the role of Green Goblin. Other villains set to appear include Sandman and Lizard, we just don’t know what actors are playing those roles. Other cast members include Zendaya as MJ, Jacob Batalon as Ned, Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, Tony Revolori as Flash, and Hannibal Buress as Coach Wilson.
The Jon Watts-directed film is set to be released in theaters on December 17, 2021.